French auto giant PSA, which produces the Citroen and Peugeot brands, said Tuesday it had boosted its profit outlook after recording a “historic year” in 2018.

The company said its net profit rose 47 per cent to a record 2.83 billion euros ($3.21 billion) in 2018, while recurring operating income soared 43 per cent to 5.69 billion euros, also a new high.

Ranked the second largest carmaker in Europe after Germany’s Volkswagen, Paris-based Groupe PSA said in a statement that its “historic year” also saw new records for revenue, which was up 18.9 per cent to 74 billion euros, as well as volume of sales.

PSA sold 3.88 million vehicles last year, up 6.8 per cent from 2017 when it acquired General Motors’ Opel business which includes British-based Vauxhall.

PSA chairman Carlos Tavares hailed the “outstanding results”.

“This demonstrates the ability of our Group to deliver a profitable and recurring growth,” he said in a statement.

The group announced a target operating margin of more than six percent by 2021 for its automotive activities, and a total of 4.5 per cent in 2019-2021.

The six-percent goal had previously only been a target for the Peugeot, Citroen and DS brands but now includes Opel and Vauxhall.